When a makeover is attempted on a successful television show, it’s almost always bungled. “Bionic Woman.” “Knight Rider.” “Melrose Place.” They’re just a few notorious examples of recent reboots that quickly crashed and burned. So when I heard CBS would… Continue Reading →

When a makeover is attempted on a successful television show, it’s almost always bungled. “Bionic Woman.” “Knight Rider.” “Melrose Place.” They’re just a few notorious examples of recent reboots that quickly crashed and burned.

So when I heard CBS would remake “Hawaii Five-0″ — a show that I maniacally cherished as a kid — I instantly experienced a case of cold sweats. “How many ways are they going to screw this one up?” I wondered.

But consider my mind happily blown. CBS has presented viewers with an exciting gift this fall. Their “Five-0″ update (10 p.m. tonight) not only doesn’t stink, it’s an action-packed, easy-on-the-eyes thrill ride that is slicker and sexier than the original series that aired from 1968 to ’80. It also contains a sense of humor that the stone-cold serious Jack Lord version lacked.

Stepping into Lord’s shoes as Detective Steve McGarrett, Oahu’s crime-fighting Big Kahuna, is Alex O’Loughlin, who after two strikes with CBS (“Moonlight”; “Three Rivers”) is getting his third — and probably final — swing.

And what a contrast he brings. Gone are the lacquered black pompadour, steely stare and granite jaw. Yes, O’Loughlin’s McGarrett is still a stoic man on a mission, but there’s an engaging hang-looseness to him. He prefers T-shirts to dark suits and isn’t shy about stripping them off to show off his rippled abs.

In tonight’s high-octane opener, McGarrett is introduced as a decorated Naval Intelligence officer out to crack a terrorist cell. But the murder of his estranged father brings him home to Hawaii, where the governor (Jean Smart) persuades him to stay and head up a new elite police task force. Explosions ensue. And gunfights.

The most dramatic — and best — change is McGarrett’s relationship with his sidekick Danny “Danno” Williams (Scott Caan). In the original, Danny, played by James MacArthur, was little more than a stage prop, doing what he was told, no questions asked.

But in “Five-0″ 2.0, Danny has transformed from yes-man to wing man. He and McGarrett are more like equals — equals who engage in verbal (even physical) sparring matches. Their smack-talking banter helps to keep things playful, and Caan is a scene-stealing delight.

Rounding out the highly appealing cast are Daniel Dae Kim (“Lost”) and Grace Park (“Battlestar Galactica”). The latter brings a feminine touch that was virtually nonexistent in the testosterone-laced original. But better not cross her. This feisty surfer-chick packs a mean punch.

Even with all the updates, fans of the original will be pleased to see that some things haven’t changed. That iconic theme song is still intact. The Hawaiian scenery is still presented in all its blazingly beautiful glory. And we even get a heartwarming “Book ’em, Danno” line before the first hour expires.

It helps that as a kid, executive producer Peter Lenkov was a big “Five-0″ fan who watched the show religiously alongside his dad. With Lenkov at the helm, the franchise appears in good hands.

It also helps that the original wasn’t exactly “Masterpiece Theater.” As much as some of us loved it, we can’t deny that it had its cheesy elements and was often stiff and stodgy. In its latter years, some episodes were just plain awful.

In other words, there was room for some contemporary improvement. With that mission accomplished, “Hawaii Five-0″ just might be one remake with staying power.

ON THE RUN: “Chase” (10 tonight, Channels 3 and 11), the latest crime series from Jerry Bruckheimer, begins, appropriately enough, with a chase.

In hot pursuit of a fugitive, U.S. Marshal Annie Frost (Kelli Giddish) trails him through a restaurant, some stockyards and even a rodeo arena and a dark alley before finally bringing him down with a vicious choke hold. Are you gasping for breath yet?

With her winning smile, Southern twang and a tough-but-tender demeanor, Giddish makes for an instantly appealing lead. Unfortunately, she’s about the only thing going for “Chase,” which is hampered by an unimaginative script.

Producers point out that their show is distinctive because, unlike other procedurals that hinge on whodunit mysteries, we know the bad guy from the start, and thus we’re left with an exciting game of cat-and-mouse. Nice try, but unless they start supporting Giddish with better writing, this “Chase” is going nowhere fast.

]]>http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2010/09/20/review-surfs-up-for-new-look-hawaii-five-0/feed/15hawaii“Lost” recap: Will the real Sayid please stand up?http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2010/02/10/lost-recap-will-the-real-sayid-please-stand-up/
http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2010/02/10/lost-recap-will-the-real-sayid-please-stand-up/#commentsWed, 10 Feb 2010 18:04:19 +0000http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/?p=17755Last night’s “Lost” episode was Kate-centric, with its “flash-sideways” pegged to her run from the law (in L.A.) and from the temple people (on the island). But it was the travails of poor Sayid that really caught our attention and… Continue Reading →

]]>Last night’s “Lost” episode was Kate-centric, with its “flash-sideways” pegged to her run from the law (in L.A.) and from the temple people (on the island). But it was the travails of poor Sayid that really caught our attention and pushed the saga in an intriguing direction.

Having just been revived in the temple’s mysterious Jacuzzi, Sayid is tortured by Dogen, the grand poo-bah (Oh, karama is indeed a bitch). Dogen places some cartoonish electrode gizmo on Sayid’s head and thrusts a red-hot poker into his torso as Jack continues to stew outside. But eventually, Dogen explains to Jack that they’re not torturing Sayid, but testing him. (Maybe it’s just a 50,000-mile tune-up).

“We believe he has been claimed,” temple guy says. “A darkness is growing in him.”

And then, the final zinger … “It happened to your sister.” The comment is followed by a quick cut to a raggedy, wild-eyed Claire in the jungle, acting all Rousseau-like and shooting people. It is the first we’ve seen of Claire on the island for over a season.

Dogen’s line about being “claimed” suggests that Sayid’s body has been taken over by someone — or something — else (Jacob? The Man in Black?) and this sort of thing has been happening for ages. Claire seems to be possessd by something or someone and we know dead Locke has been taken over by the Man in Black/Smoke Monster (At least we think we know).

And now a few past incidents may be coming into a deeper focus. Apparently, the temple waters were used to save young Ben after Sayid shot him (Recall at the time, Richard warned the castaways that, while Ben’s life could be saved, he would never be the same).

And we can now reasonably deduct that all those dead characters we’ve seen come to life in the past (like Jack’s deceased father) were actually Ol’ Smokey appearing in the form of the dead characters and trying to influence the castaways’ actions.

But there are still many questions (as always) left to be hashed out. Will the “new” Sayid be good or evil? Dogen’s line about “darkness” suggests evil — but are we to automatically believe that Dogen is a good guy? What exactly are his intentions? And does grown-up Ben have that same darkness in his heart? (Leaving us to assume that Widmore might be the good guy?). In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, “Lost” showrunner Damon Lindelof warned, “Your sense of who’s good and who’s bad might change a bit over the course of the season.”

More mind games? Sounds good to me.

Some quick observations:

— It was interesting to see the vulnerable side of Sawyer. He actually teared up, telling Kate that he was going to ask the dearly departed Juliet to marry him. (Stellar work by Josh Holloway).
— Sad Sawyer line: “Some of us are meant to be alone.” (I can still feel a lump in my throat).
— Funniest line of the night: “You’re not a zombie, right?” (Hurley to the resurrected Sayid).
— Second funniest line: “Ill be in the food court if you need me.” (Miles to the gang in the temple). And doesn’t the temple look like somehting straight out of a theme park — Disneyland’s Indiana Jones ride?
— Ethan’s back! The creepy guy who kidnapped Claire on the island — and took an interest in her baby — returned in the flash-sideways as the man conducting Claire’s ultra-sound. His name? Dr. Goodspeed. (On the island, Charlie killed Ethan).
— Poor Arzt nearly gets run over in L.A. and he blurts out the line from “Midnight Cowboy” — “Hey, I’m walkin’ HERE!”
— Will Claire now raise Aaron in the L.A. timeline? How badly did you want her to slap that mother for not bothering to call Claire after deciding she could not take the baby? (Where is wild island Caire when you need her?)
— Jack, the “man of science,” still can’t bring himself to be a man of faith — refusing to give that weird horse pill to Sayid. And it looks like that was a “good” thing because Dogen claimed the pill was poison.
— Just a quick personal observation: I’ve spent so much time on Oahu, growing up, that when I see the flash-sideways scenes at the airport and in the city streets, I keep thinking we’re in Honolulu and I have to remind myself that, no, we’re in L.A. It’s just a nit-picky thing, but I wonder how hard it would have been for the “Lost” crew to have shot at least a few exteriors at LAX and surrounding environs.

The “Entourage” gang in Hawaii. With all the new shows starting up — or preparing to start up — it has been easy to overlook the new season of “Entourage,” which kicked off on HBO Sunday night. The opener started… Continue Reading →

With all the new shows starting up — or preparing to start up — it has been easy to overlook the new season of “Entourage,” which kicked off on HBO Sunday night.

The opener started on a hilarious note with movie critic Richard Roeper absolutely thrashing “Medellin,” the independent film starring Vince that has bombed badly. The horrible reviews have sent Vince and Turtle off to a secret Mexico hideaway, where they have lots of hot sex with beautiful women on the beach and generally engage in boyish gluttony.

Meanwhile, back in L.A., Ari is in full-throttle rant mode — just the way we love to see him.

Last season, “Entourage” just sort of spun its wheels, so I’m looking forward to seeing if the downward turn in Vince’s career brings a new dynamic to the show. How will he react? Will have to struggle for the first time in his show-biz life? Will he lose the laid-back demeanor and dig in for a fight? What happenes to Vince’s relationships when he suddenly isn’t the A-list celeb? I don’t know for sure if this is the way the producers are going, but the show could use such a change.

BTW, as someone who has an ongoing love affair with all things Hawaii, I should point out that Vince and Turtle weren’t ensconced in Mexico at all. I immediately recognized those scenes as being shot on lovely Waimanalo Beach, located on the less-crowded Windward side of Oahu.

]]>http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2008/09/08/entourage-returns-in-style/feed/3Entourage08_21Obama Fever In Hawaiihttp://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2008/08/14/obama-fever-in-hawaii/
http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2008/08/14/obama-fever-in-hawaii/#commentsThu, 14 Aug 2008 17:14:58 +0000http://www.ibabuzz.com/tvfreak/?p=1026Turns out that I’m not the most important visitor to Oahu this week. The island media has been going absolutely bonkers for Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama, who has dropped by with his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters for… Continue Reading →

]]>Turns out that I’m not the most important visitor to Oahu this week. The island media has been going absolutely bonkers for Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama, who has dropped by with his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters for a few days of rest and relaxation.

Watching the local media — television and print — chasing Obama around the island and reporting on his every move has been quite entertaining. Better than any hula-dancing show at a Waikiki hotel. And you thought the national media fawned over this guy.

When Obama arrived, he spoke in passing of wanting to go chow down at local haunts, Zippy’s and the Rainbow Drive-In. So what did a local TV station do? Send out a reporter to talk to owners and patrons at the two establishments to gauge their excitement over a possible visit by the candidate. When Obama and his family went to see “The Dark Knight” at a Honolulu theater, reporters actually questioned other moviegoers about getting a glimpse of the man (or is he a rock star?). So what was he doing? “Eating popcorn,” one theater patron replied. “Everybody was passing popcorn. I tried not to stare.”

When Obama played a game of pick-up basketball at Punahou School, cameras were there. When he visited his grandma (or, as the locals say, “tutu”), reporters were camped outside. When he and the kids went for shave ice in Kailua, thenewspapers reported exactly what flavor he ordered (guava orange, Lanikai lime and choo-choo cherry). The Honolulu Star-Bulletin is even solicting readers for photos. If you happen to snap a picture of Obama somewhere around Oahu, they want it for their Website.

On one hand, it all feels a little too provincial and even comical. On the other, it’s completely understandable. Obama is a local boy, after all, who spent a good chunk of his childhood here. And Hawaii is a tight-knit, relatively isolated little place that takes intense pride in its national success stories. Moreover, a visit by a candidate during a presidential election year is an extremely rare occurence as nominees tend to ignore the islands because they obviously carry vey little electoral clout.

Oh, but the good news is that the Obama family leaves Oahu on Friday. Maybe I’ll be able to get a little attention, then.